Speaker, in an interview shortly after the hon Minister delivered his speech, I was told by one journalist that the worst nightmare for opposition parties would be if the Budget signalled a shift to the left. He then asked me if my worst nightmare had come true.
I immediately thought about the fact that, with a projected deficit of 7,6%, by any account, this is indeed a left budget statement. It sends a very strong signal that social spending will not be cut during this recessionary period. It makes financial provision for the extension of the Child Support Grant to all children under the age of 18 and provides an extra R900 million for antiretroviral treatment for HIV patients.
In addition, it gives our cash-strapped local government sphere an extra R12,6 billion and ensures that our infrastructure built programme will act as an economic stimulus during this recessionary period.
If this is supposed to be my worst nightmare - I thought to myself - then I would like to state for the record that I believe there is a very fine line between nightmares and dreams.
The fact is that the terms "left" and "right" do not apply in their traditional sense anymore. Proof of this lies in the fact that, on that same day, I heard the economist Brian Kantor - not a leftist by any means - state that he was against rigid inflation targeting, the supposed holy cow of the right.
It is clear therefore that we need an economic policy that does not preserve the status quo of half our people living in poverty, 40% unemployment and rising inequalities.
The ID supports the Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement and the Minister's commitment to reign in wasteful expenditure while expanding provisions to the poor. Perhaps now the hon Minister can start the difficult task of getting the message across to his Cabinet colleagues that it is not the car that maketh the Minister, but their solidarity with the poor. I thank you.